Chateau Musar 2000

Restrained nose hints at strawberry, shoepolish, aromatic herbs and tar, then fruitier on the palate with a noteworthy tannic bite. The mainly red fruit character hints at the Cinsalut presence (roughly 33% of the blend). Slightly one-dimensional at present needs a few more years to show all its full potential, like all Musars. This is the first release of Chateau Musar since the great Serge Hochar, Decanter's first ever Man of the Year.

The 2007 Chateau Musar, the flagship estate red, is the typical, roughly equal blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Carignan and Cinsault, aged for 12 months in French oak. Adding a much needed layer of concentration to the Hochar also reviewed this issue, this also provides more focus and intensity, while still seeming to be a civilized Musar. Finishing with complexity, earthy nuances and a gamey hint, it is a relatively polished Musar that shows both finesse and flavor on the finish. After opening rather soft and reticent, the underlying power emerged strongly. There are tannins lurking underneath, of course. Add the acidity, providing some steel and intensity, and this becomes a completely different wine with three hours of decanting, up to and including, what seemed to me to be a high-toned nuance, a hint of Amarone that, hopefully, stays under control. With the right food match, you might not notice. Like most Musars, this is a bottling that has a lot of stuff going on. Take it for what it is. In any event, if I didn't have it in front of me at home the whole time, I'd think someone had switched my glasses from start to finish. It went from "nice" to "it's Musar!" It should age pretty nicely – they always do – but this opened so well that I would not chastise anyone who decided to dive in now. That said, as this became more powerful and astringent with decanting, it certainly demonstrated that it will benefit from more cellaring. It also proved that it could use another year or two to settle down. Let's take the aging curve in stages. Drink 2016-2032.

The flagship Musar bottling, this blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cinsault and Carignan is lush and almost Port-like in 2007, save for the gust of spice that comes in on the acidity and brightens the finish. It’s wild and warm, a Mediterranean red with a forest floor complexity that keeps it engaging for hours. (8/2014)